Matthew Lawrence had thick skin after divorce from Cheryl Burke

Matthew Laurent shares what it was like to face a marriage breakdown in the public eye after his highly publicized split from his ex-wife Cheryl Burke.

The 45-year-old actor opened up about the breakup in an interview with Daily Mail posted on Thursday, January 1, when asked what it was like to bond with her new partner Pepper (real name Rozonda Thomas), following his public divorce. (The former couple married in 2019 before Burke filed for divorce in 2022.)

“That’s one of the cool things about choosing to do a career like this is that your private life is public, so you have to experience these things on the public stage,” he told the outlet. “And I don’t think it’s really fun for anyone, you know?”

Lawrence, who has remained relatively quiet about his split from Burke over the years, added that it was difficult to deal with other people’s versions of what was wrong in his marriage.

“Especially when you don’t really have control of the narrative or if the narrative isn’t even true, you just have to say, ‘Well, I’m going to have to move on with my life and continue to live the life that I want to live. And the people that I care about know what’s real and what’s not real,'” he continued. “And you just have to have a thick skin and keep going.”

Ancient Dancing with the stars pro Burke, 41, has shared her thoughts on her divorce from Lawrence in the past. Speaking on the “I Do, Part 2” podcast in October 2025, Burke admitted she was still “mourning” the relationship breakdown, which occurred around the same time she came out DWTS after 26 seasons.

“It wasn’t just the divorce from my ex. It was the divorce from Dancing with the stars all of that in one year, and then I left the house that I lived in for 16 years and moved to where I am today,” Burke explained. “So it’s like it all happened in one year, and those are three big life changes. It is said that if you reach five in a year, you will probably go to the nearest mental institution.

Burke added, “To say that I haven’t done it or that I’m still grieving sometimes would also be a lie. I think it can be both, you know? I know I had to end both divorces so I could see what I see in the mirror and actually love the person I see.”

In October 2024, Burke also claimed in another episode of the same podcast that financial problems had a negative impact on their marriage. She wondered aloud if Lawrence felt “emasculated” by earning less than her.

“I knew what I was getting into. I knew what I was getting into financially,” Burke said at the time. “I’m not going to speak for him. I’m not here to denigrate him at all. But I do believe there is this gender role.”

She continued: “A man can feel a little emasculated when he’s not making the majority of the money. I think that may have had some detrimental consequences.”

For his part, the Mrs. Doubtfire The star has moved on with Chilli and the couple are now happier than ever since first dating in late 2022.

“I wouldn’t have been ready for this type of relationship in my early 20s. No way,” Lawrence told exclusively Us every week of his romance with Chilli on December 19 last year.

He added that even in his 30s, he still might not be ready for the type of love he and the TLC singer share. But now the timing was perfect.

“I think I certainly would have responded the same way, but I don’t know if I would have had the maturity or the experience to know what the other side is like, to appreciate [it] as much as me,” he explained to We.